Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings

November 15 - December 31 By Stuart Ross
Vocal and musical arrangements by James Raitt, Brad Ellis, Raymond Berg, and David Snyder
Musical Continuity and Supervision By David Snyder
Original Direction and Musical Staging by Stuart Ross
Produced by special
arrangement with Music Theatre, International.

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the Round Barn Theatre and our special
holiday musical treat Plaid Tidings. Our play is the continuing
story of four humble, fresh-faced guys named Sparky, Jinx, Frankie and
Smudge who met in high school when they joined the audiovisual club in
1956. They discovered that they shared an affection for music and entertaining.
So, they started getting together in the basement of Smudge's family's
plumbing supply company to rehearse and dream about becoming like their
idols; The Four Aces, The Four Lads, The Hi-Los and The Crew Cuts. It
was here that they became the harmony group "Forever Plaid."

When most of us think of the 1950’s, we think of Rock n’ Roll, greasers,
hot rods, Elvis, Annette, Fabian, D.A. haircuts and teenage rebellion.
But there was a “flipside” to this era – the side of harmony, innocence
and the sincerity of dreams. It was a time when most parents and
kids listened and danced to the same music; when families partook of
the ritual of gathering in front of the TV to watch their favorite variety
shows like Ed Sullivan or the Perry Como Show.

As fate would have it, the Plaids were killed in a car crash on their
way to their first major gig. But miraculously, through the powers of
harmony and the expanding holes in the Ozone Layer, they are allowed
to come back to perform the show they never got to do in life. The boys
take the stage, tentatively at first, then with growing confidence as
they realize that they truly did have something special. Blending perfectly,
they hit the last chord and disappear.

Now, just in time for the holidays, the Plaids find themselves back
on Earth again! Let's all discover together through the magic of harmonized
seasonal favorites, why they've come to the Round Barn Theatre and what
their true purpose is. Enjoy!

Darren Server

Plaid Tidings Cast

Frankie

David Ryan

Sparky

Matt Casey

Jinx

Sean Widener

Smudge

Timothy Joyce

Plaid Tidings Musicians

Piano

Catherine Hammer

Bass

Jeremy Springer

Plaid Tidings Staff

Executive Producer

Richard Pletcher

Managing Artistic Director

Laurie Schotz

Director / Music Director / Choreographer

Darren Server

Production Stage Manager

Phillip B. Richard II

Technical Director

Alvin Yoder

ASM/Sound

Corey McIntyre

ASM/Wardrobe

Monica Gauer

Set Designer

Richard Pletcher

Costume Designer

Laurie Schotz

Lighting Designer

Phillip B. Richard II

Properties Master

Jeremy Springer

Vocal Captain

Michael Misko

Box Office Manager

Jennifer Scheffer

Musical Numbers

Amour / Alleluia

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

Besame Mucho

Jamaica Farewell

Carol of the Bells

Jingle Bells

The Christmas Song

Joy to the World

Christmas Talk

Kingston Market

Cool Yule

Kiss of Firs

Day-O

Let It Snow

Deus Ex Plaid

Oh, Little Town of Bethlehem

The Dreidel Song

Mambo Italiano

Fever

Matilda

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Mele Kalikimaka

Hey, There

Merry Christmas

Holiday for Strings

A Mixmaster Christmas

Mr. Santa

Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer

Sha-Boom (Life Could Be a Dream)

Stranger in Paradise

'Twuz Tha Nite B4 X-Mas

We Wish You a Perry Christmas

Home For The Holidays

Moments to Remember

Plaid Tidings Cast Bios

Matt
Casey (Sparky) is so excited to be finishing
out the season here at the Round Barn Theatre. Matt is from Cascade
IA, and has recently earned a BFA in Musical Theater from Rockford
College in Rockford, IL. Matt could have been seen earlier this year
in the RBT productions of Plain & Fancy, 42nd Street,
and Annie Get Your Gun. Some of his other favorite credits
include Puck in A Midsummer Nights Dream, Leo Frank in Parade,
Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors, and Munkustrap in CATS.
Matt would like to thank his family and friends for their continual
support, and would like to thank YOU for coming! Enjoy the show!

Catherine
Hammer (Piano) is from Leavenworth, Kansas. She
is returning to the Round Barn Theatre for a second Christmas season;
Last Christmas she performed the role of Victoria in CATS.
Some other favorite roles include Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors,
Miss Dorothy in Throughly Modern Millie, Shelby in Spitfire
Grill, and Good Luck Bear on the Care Bears Live! National
Tour. Special thanks to my family for their love and support. Romans
8:38-39

Tim
Joyce (Smudge) is a native of Rochester, NY but now
calls NYC home. He has performed across the country in Virginia, Montana,
New York, Indiana, Nebraska, and most recently Alaska. Favorite shows
include Into the Woods, Seussical, Kiss Me Kate, Smokey
Joe’s Café, Pirates of Penzance, and Peter
Pan. Love to LLC.

David
Ryan (Frankie) Audience last saw David playing
Peter Reber in Plain & Fancy or as Foster Wilson and Pawnee
Bill in Annie Get Your Gun. Originally from Buffalo, New York, David
recieved his B.F.A. In Theater Performance from Niagara University. David
has worked professionally at Warehouse Theatre, Thin Air Theatre Company,
Playhouse in the Square, and the Arkansas Arts Center. Favorite
professional credits are: Rent (Mark), Spelling Bee (Leaf Coneybear),
Altar Boyz (Matthew), Into the Woods (Rapunzel's Prince), Romeo & Juliet
(Romeo), Midsummer Night's Dream (Lysander), I Love You Because
(Austin), and The Seagull (Medvedenko). David's next move is
the big move to New York City and the beginning of a great adventure. David
would especially like to thank Laurie for all of his oppurtunites
here in Nappanee. Much love to friends, family, and DJ for the
endless support! www.davidryan.webs.com

Jeremy
Springer (Bass) now hails from Boston, but grew up just a
few hours down the road in Findlay, OH. He graduated last year with
a degree in Theater Performance, and has been playing the upright bass
since he was nine

Sean
Widener (Jinx) is excited to be spending the holidays
with the Round Barn Theatre. He is a native of Dearborn, Michigan now
residing in NYC and a graduate of Shenandoah Conservatory. Past roles
include The Wizard of Oz (Scarecrow), Oklahoma (Will
Parker), I Love You, You’re Perfect Now Change (Man 1), and You’re
A Good Man Charlie Brown (Linus). Happy Holidays!

Plaid Tidings Staff Bios

Monica Gauer (Assistant Stage Manager / Wardrobe) is
excited to join the Round Barn Theatre! She enjoyed watching performances
here as a child, and now she can’t wait to bring the excitement to a
new era of audiences. Monica graduated from the University of Southern
Indiana, and has since worked in a variety of aspects of theatre. Thank
you to her family and friends for all the support! Break-A-Leg to everyone!

Corey McIntyre (Sound Designer/Assistant
Stage Manager) has been involved with theater technology since age 12
and has been lucky enough to build a career steadily in the field of
sound. I’ve worked everywhere from churches to amusement parks with
exposure to everything from bluegrass to rock and roll. I would like
to thank my family and friends for all the love and support they give.

Richard L. Pletcher (Producer), with his father
LaVern, founded Amish Acres in 1968. The Amish farm was preserved and
restored and is now listed in The National Register of Historic Places.
Following a one year experiment in dinner-theatre with George Bledsoe
in 1971, he added musical theatre to the interpretation of the historic
farm by producing Plain and Fancy in the Locke Township Meeting
House in 1986. It moved to the Round Barn Theatre in 1991. The play has
been running for 25 consecutive years having surpassed 3,500 performances
before audiences of over 350,000 people. Plain and Fancy’s Tony
Award® winning author Joseph Stein and Tony Award® winning composer Albert
Hague have attended Plain and Fancy at Amish Acres.

At Mr. Stein’s urging Amish Acres became a regional musical repertory
theatre in 1996 with the addition of five shows in rotation with Plain
and Fancy each season. Amish Acres has now produced seventy two
different main stage Broadway musicals and The Round Barn Theatre stage
is named for and dedicated to Joseph Stein. Eight of Mr. Stein’s musicals
have been produced on his stage, including Plain and Fancy, Fiddler
on the Roof, The Baker’s Wife, and Zorba, plus staged readings
of Take Me Along, Rags, and Carmelina, plus a Second Stage Production of Enter Laughing. As
you might expect, he has said that The Round Barn Theatre is his favorite
regional theatre with which he has been associated.

In October of 2006, Dick and his wife Susan were guests of Joseph and
Elisa Stein in New York City for the York Theatre’s Mufti Series production
of Plain and Fancy, the last in a month long, three show festival
of Stein’s work that included Take Me Along and Carmelina. Artistic
Director James Morgan recognized Amish Acres’ twenty year production
of Plain and Fancy in the program and in his introductions from
the stage. The Pletchers and Jeremy Littlejohn attended the York’s presentation
of the Oscar Hammerstein Lifetime Achievement Award in Musical Theatre
to Joseph Stein in November of 2007. Stein was further inducted into
the Theatre Hall of Fame in February of 2008. He passed away in 2010 and the Joseph Stein Memorial Fund was created to provide free season tickets to kids.

Philip B. Richard II (Production Stage Manager / Lighting
Designer) is excited to be at The Round Barn Theatre for his first season.
Philip grew up in Dallastown, PA and was an Entertainment Coordinator
for 5 years at the Walt Disney World Resort and has previously worked
for Austin Shakespeare Festival, Orlando Shakespeare Theater,Festival
56 in Princeton, IL, and Honolulu Theatre for Youth. His
regional credits include the National Post Broadway premiere of Souvenir with
Orlando Theatre Project and World Premiers of If You Give A Moose
A Muffin, Stripes & Stars, and Wittenberg.
Philip’s regional lighting credits include productions of The Pillowman,
Stripes and Stars, Nosferatu, Rocky Horror Show, Footloose, Scrooge, and Jesus
Christ Superstar. Philip is a member of the Equity Membership Candidate
program and the Stage Manager Association. He would like to thank his
family for their continued encourgment and you the audience for supporting
the arts, without you theatre would not be possible. Happy Holidays and
Enjoy the show!

Darren Server (Director / Music Director / Choreographer
for Plaid Tidings) was born into a family of stooges; namely, “The Three
Stooges.” His inspiration has always been his grandfather “Curly” Howard
and his great-uncles, Moe and Shemp. Darren began singing, dancing and
playing the piano at the age of ten and has never stopped. His love for ForeverPlaid began
in 1997 when he was cast as "Smudge" in the Honolulu premiere
at the famous Don Ho Showroom in Waikiki. It ran 230 performances. He
then went on to direct, musical direct and choreograph the show for American
Classic Voyages Cruise Line. It was after a year of performing the role
of “Oscar” in the Broadway national tour of 42nd Street that
Darren decided it was time to move to New York City. Musical Directing
and playing piano for NYU's Musical Theatre Conservatory was his first
job in NYC. Since then, he has directed, musical directed, choreographed
and performed in many shows all over the USA and Canada. Most recently,
Darren musical directed and played the role of "Vic Schoen" in
the Andrews Sisters musical, Sisters of Swing at Totem Pole
Playhouse in PA and at Trinity Repertory Company in RI was associate
conductor and pianist for Camelot.

Laurie Schotz (Managing Director/Costumes) is thrilled
to be returning for a second season at Amish Acres. Before joining the
Amish Acres staff in 2009 she was the Artistic Director for 10 years
at Bearcreek Farms Resort in Bryant, IN. Prior to her time there, you
could have seen her fall off a building at Old Tucson Studios, aboard
a cruise as a production singer/dancer, or running her own entertainment
company in Chicago, IL for 13 years. She would like to thank her brother
Michael for teaching and guiding her through a difficult time but always
keeping her laughing. He has taught her a goal is a dream with a deadline.
Laurie hopes you enjoy your whole experience at Amish Acres and remember
to “Embrace the Pace!”

Each Round Barn theatre Musical production calls for a Theme Dinner
and Wine Bar, a joyous celebration with menus written with tongue-in-cheek
show references and double entendres, often obscure and ridiculous. the
responsibility for such frivolity rest soley with Richard Pletcher. The
ensuing menus are lovingly prepared by chef Ruth Miller whose sense of
humor make it into it kettle and skillet.